The Wild Swans at Coole
Encyclopedia
The Wild Swans at Coole is a collection of poems by William Butler Yeats
, first published in 1917
. It is also the name of a poem in that collection. The Wild Swans at Coole is in the "middle stage" of Yeats' writing and is concerned with, amongst other themes, Irish nationalism
and the creation of an Irish aesthetic
.
The poem The Wild Swans at Coole is written in a very regular stanza
form: five six-line stanzas, each written in a roughly iambic meter, with the first and third lines in tetrameter
, the second, fourth, and sixth lines in trimeter
, and the fifth line in pentameter
, so that the pattern of stressed syllables in each stanza is 434353. The rhyme scheme
in each stanza is ABCBDD.
The trees are in their autumn beauty,
The woodland paths are dry,
Under the October twilight the water
Mirrors a still sky;
Upon the brimming water among the stones
Are nine-and-fifty swans.
The nineteenth autumn has come upon me
Since I first made my count;
I saw, before I had well finished,
All suddenly mount
And scatter wheeling in great broken rings
Upon their clamorous wings.
I have looked upon those brilliant creatures,
And now my heart is sore.
All's changed since I, hearing at twilight,
The first time on this shore,
The bell-beat of their wings above my head,
Trod with a lighter tread.
Unwearied still, lover by lover,
They paddle in the cold
Companionable streams or climb the air;
Their hearts have not grown old;
Passion or conquest, wander where they will,
Attend upon them still.
But now they drift on the still water,
Mysterious, beautiful;
Among what rushes will they build,
By what lake's edge or pool
Delight men's eyes when I awake some day
To find they have flown away?
----
Ego Dominus Tuus
The Scholars
On being asked for a War Poem
William Butler Yeats
William Butler Yeats was an Irish poet and playwright, and one of the foremost figures of 20th century literature. A pillar of both the Irish and British literary establishments, in his later years he served as an Irish Senator for two terms...
, first published in 1917
1917 in poetry
Nationality words link to articles with information on the nation's poetry or literature .-Events:* July — Siegfried Sassoon issues his "Soldier's Declaration" and is sent by the military authorities to Craiglockhart War Hospital in Edinburgh, where on August 17 Wilfred Owen introduces himself...
. It is also the name of a poem in that collection. The Wild Swans at Coole is in the "middle stage" of Yeats' writing and is concerned with, amongst other themes, Irish nationalism
Irish nationalism
Irish nationalism manifests itself in political and social movements and in sentiment inspired by a love for Irish culture, language and history, and as a sense of pride in Ireland and in the Irish people...
and the creation of an Irish aesthetic
Aesthetics
Aesthetics is a branch of philosophy dealing with the nature of beauty, art, and taste, and with the creation and appreciation of beauty. It is more scientifically defined as the study of sensory or sensori-emotional values, sometimes called judgments of sentiment and taste...
.
The poem The Wild Swans at Coole is written in a very regular stanza
Stanza
In poetry, a stanza is a unit within a larger poem. In modern poetry, the term is often equivalent with strophe; in popular vocal music, a stanza is typically referred to as a "verse"...
form: five six-line stanzas, each written in a roughly iambic meter, with the first and third lines in tetrameter
Tetrameter
Tetrameter: [ti'tramitə]; te·tram·e·ter; a verse of four measuresOrigin: early 17th century : from late Latin tetrametrus, originally neuter from Greek tetrametros 'having four measures,' from tetra- 'four' + metron 'measure'....
, the second, fourth, and sixth lines in trimeter
Trimeter
In poetry, a trimeter is a metre of three metrical feet per line—example:...
, and the fifth line in pentameter
Pentameter
Pentameter may refer to:*the iambic pentameter of the modern period*the dactylic pentameter of antiquity...
, so that the pattern of stressed syllables in each stanza is 434353. The rhyme scheme
Rhyme scheme
A rhyme scheme is the pattern of rhyme between lines of a poem or song. It is usually referred to by using letters to indicate which lines rhyme. In other words, it is the pattern of end rhymes or lines...
in each stanza is ABCBDD.
The trees are in their autumn beauty,
The woodland paths are dry,
Under the October twilight the water
Mirrors a still sky;
Upon the brimming water among the stones
Are nine-and-fifty swans.
The nineteenth autumn has come upon me
Since I first made my count;
I saw, before I had well finished,
All suddenly mount
And scatter wheeling in great broken rings
Upon their clamorous wings.
I have looked upon those brilliant creatures,
And now my heart is sore.
All's changed since I, hearing at twilight,
The first time on this shore,
The bell-beat of their wings above my head,
Trod with a lighter tread.
Unwearied still, lover by lover,
They paddle in the cold
Companionable streams or climb the air;
Their hearts have not grown old;
Passion or conquest, wander where they will,
Attend upon them still.
But now they drift on the still water,
Mysterious, beautiful;
Among what rushes will they build,
By what lake's edge or pool
Delight men's eyes when I awake some day
To find they have flown away?
----
Poems in The Wild Swans at Coole
The Wild Swans at CooleThe Wild Swans at Coole (poem)
"The Wild Swans at Coole" is a poem written by the Irish poet William Butler Yeats. It is included in the 1919 collection The Wild Swans at Coole...
Ego Dominus Tuus
Ego Dominus Tuus
Ego Dominus Tuus, Latin for "I am your lord," sometimes translated as "I am your master" is a poem by the Irish poet William Butler Yeats. It was published in the 1918 book Per Amica Silentia Lunae, where it introduced some of Yeats's essays, and collected with other poems in The Wild Swans at...
The Scholars
The Scholars (poem)
"The Scholars" is a poem written by the Irish poet William Butler Yeats. It is included in the 1919 collection The Wild Swans at Coole.BALD heads forgetful of their sins, Old, learned, respectable bald heads Edit and annotate the lines...
On being asked for a War Poem
On being asked for a War Poem
thumb|right|Photograph of William Butler Yeats taken by Charles Beresford in 1911"On being asked for a War Poem" is a poem by William Butler Yeats written on February 6, 1915 in response to a request by Henry James that Yeats compose a political poem about World War I...